The Teaching Center fosters scholarship on teaching and learning by undertaking collaborative projects with faculty and staff from the across the University, including Arts & Sciences, Cornerstone, and Washington University Libraries.

Collaborative Projects

• Student Support
• Using Technology in Teaching

Student Support

Peer-Led, Team-Learning (PLTL) Groups
R. Frey, K. DeAngelis, H. Fields, S. Hockings, L. Kuehne and J. Woods
(The Teaching Center; the Departments of Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics; and Cornerstone)

• Currently used in lower-level lecture courses in the Departments of Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematics, PLTL groups are made up of 6-8 students and facilitated by a peer leader. These study groups encourage active student learning.

An Analysis of Discourse in Peer-Led Team Learning
R. Frey (The Teaching Center and Chemistry) and K. Sawyer (Education)

• This project, supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation, studies conversational and group dynamics in Peer-Led, Team-Learning (PLTL) groups in Chemistry. The aim is to learn what makes PLTL such an effective learning environment in undergraduate science education.

Online Diagnostic Exam and Mentoring Program for General Chemistry
R. Frey, J. Riley, S. Shields, and W. Spees
(The Teaching Center and the Department of Chemistry)

• Development of an online review tutorial and diagnostic exam for general chemistry, which is used to ascertain less-prepared students and offer them a peer-mentoring program focused on teaching study and problem-solving skills to facilitate their success in General Chemistry. This program is being funded by HHMI.

The Writing Fellows Program
R. Frey and S. Mukhi
(The Teaching Center and Cornerstone)

• The Writing Fellows Program enables upper-level undergraduates to assist faculty members by providing peer-to-peer help with writing.

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Using Technology in Teaching

HP Initiative 2007: Enhancing Student Learning Using Spatial Technologies, Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, and Group Work

R. Frey, A. Addison, T. Parsons, and K. Sawyer
(The Teaching Center, the University’s GIS Facilty, and the Departments of Education and History)

• Starting in fall 2007, HP wireless tablet PC technology was introduced into the humanities and social sciences. The focus is on strengthening students’ real-life skills through active-learning exercises and group work. Using tablet PCs in Introduction to the Learning Sciences enables students for the first time to have hands-on experience with computer-supported collaborative-learning (CSCL) software, which is essential for understanding CSCL environments. In spring 2008, implementation of tablet PCs into the freshman-focus course International Development will allow us to introduce students to the use of Geospatial Information Systems (GIS) software in the analysis and presentation of data. In addition, the mobile laptop sets will allow for the introduction of in-class GIS training into University courses that are using GIS applications.

HP Initiative 2005: The Use of Wireless Tablet PCs in Chemistry
R. Frey, W. Buhro, D. Holten, and W. Spees
(The Teaching Center and the Department of Chemistry)

• Starting in 2005, HP wireless tablet PC technology was introduced in two upper-level undergraduate chemistry courses: Physical Chemistry Laboratory and Solid State and Materials Chemistry. The focus is on increasing students’ understanding of practicing-chemists’ techniques and skills by introducing in-class, active-learning exercises for chemical modeling into our materials course and the electronic laboratory notebook into our physical-chemistry laboratory course. Students use the Tablet PCs to transfer, share and analyze data; to record observations, download figures, and write reports; to solve computational-modeling problems; and to render three-dimensional objects.

Interdisciplinary Applications for General Chemistry Laboratory

R. Frey, R.E. Casiday, R.K. Deppe, M. Gilbertson, C. Herman, D. Holten, and W. Spees
(The Teaching Center, the Department of Chemistry, and Oglethorpe University)

• These application-oriented, Web-based tutorials were designed for General Chemistry Laboratory to demonstrate the importance of chemistry in students’ everyday lives, to improve students’ abilities to solve interdisciplinary problems, and to reinforce fundamental chemical concepts. This program was funded by HHMI.

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For more information about The Teaching Center’s collaborative projects, contact Gina Frey by email, or by phone at 935-7474.